Venus gives up No. 1 ranking and crown

WIMBLEDON, England (AP) -- First the No. 1 ranking, then the Wimbledon title -- Venus Williams has now relinquished both to little sister Serena.

The balance of power in the Williams family has shifted, and Venus may have trouble regaining the upper hand.

"It's not fun losing, no matter who you lose to," Venus said after Saturday's 7-6 (4), 6-3 defeat in the women's final. "It's not something that I'm going to get used to or try to adjust to because I'm not one for losing often."

The 22-year-old Venus had won 20 straight matches at Wimbledon and was one win away from becoming the first woman to capture three consecutive titles since Steffi Graf in 1991-93.

But she was thoroughly outplayed by 20-year-old Serena, who dictated the points and had Venus -- usually the aggressor -- running from side to side and playing defensive shots to keep the ball in play.

It's a shock seeing Venus being pushed around the court. Only one person in the world could do that -- her sister.

"She just had a better shot," Venus said. "I think I played well, high percentage tennis. She just was pressing and hitting a lot of forceful shots."

Venus beat Serena in the U.S. Open final last September. But Venus has since lost three straight to her sister, including in the French Open final last month.

Venus still has more Grand Slam titles than Serena (4 to 3) and holds a career edge in head-to-head matches (5-4). But Serena is clearly in command now.

"It's great to see Serena doing well because for a while there she wasn't doing her best," Venus said. "I didn't think she was doing the best that she could do. Now I think she has to feel better that she's taken full advantage of her career."

Venus will drop to No. 2 behind Serena in the new tour rankings to be released Monday. Serena assured herself of taking the top spot for the first time when she Amelie Mauresmo in Thursday's semifinals.

Asked whether she expects to be No. 1 again, Venus said, "Well, that's what I'm here for, to be on top, not trying to linger around at No. 2. But I've done my personal best this year. I don't think I could do more."

"I still feel that I am in a dominant position, but it's almost impossible to win every match," she said. "I aspire to do so, but it doesn't always happen."

Venus was slightly off her game Saturday, especially in the second set. Nursing a sore right shoulder, partly a result from playing doubles with Serena as well as singles, Venus didn't get he usual speed and power on her serves and had a few crucial double faults.

Venus, who can serve at over 120 mph (194 kph), averaged only 100 mph (162 kph) on her first serve and 82 mph (132 kph) on her second.

Venus' fifth double-fault handed Serena a 4-2 lead in the second set. Venus broke back for 4-3, but served an ugly double fault -- a 67 mph (108 kph) duck which was wide by six inches (15 cms) -- on break point in the next game to go down 5-3. Serena served out the match in the next game.

It didn't take Venus long to revert to her big sister role.

As the two waited for the trophy presentation, Venus told Serena to remember to curtsy to the royal box.

"No one told me the first year that you have to curtsy," she said. "So I was just running around like a fool. I made it a point to tell her that you have to curtsy."

Venus was particularly despondent after the match, but took heart in knowing that the trophy was going to the same family cabinet.

"It's definitely a different feeling from playing some other players," Venus said. "Serena is my sister and I'm really happy she won, especially her first time. I would have loved to have won. At the same time, I'm so happy for her."

 

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